Abnormal Psychology
Exam #3
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
1) What are the two key moods involved in mood disorders?
A) anger and depression
C) mania and depression
B) sadness and anxiety
D) anger and mania
2) Which of the following is TRUE of the relationship between mood disorders and suicide?
A) suicide only occurs frequently with unipolar depressions
B) suicide only occurs frequently with bipolar II depressions
C) over 90% of people with any mood disorder commit suicide
D) depressive episodes are the most common predisposing factor for suicide
3) Jasmine is constantly tired, low in self-esteem, and has trouble sleeping. If she is diagnosed with
dysthymia, we can guess that
A) her symptoms came on suddenly in response to a stressful event.
B) she also experiences intense periods of anxiety.
C) the duration of her symptoms lasts from two weeks to two months.
D) her symptoms are not present every day but have lasted for years.
4) One reason for the gender discrepancy in the incidence of dissociative identity disorder may be
that
A) there is a hormonal dysregulation that usually accompanies this disorder, making it more common in
women.
B) women are more likely to feign this disorder.
C) women are more susceptible to stress than men.
D) girls are much more likely to be sexually abused than boys.
5) Major depression differs from dysthymia in that
A) more symptoms must be present and symptoms must occur every day for at least two weeks in order to
diagnose major depression.
B) a person must have experienced a manic or hypomanic episode to receive a diagnosis of major
depression.
C) intermittent normal moods may last a few days or weeks in major depression, but not in dysthymia.
D) cognitive and motivational symptoms occur only in major depressive disorder.
6) As discussed in class, alcohol is first metabolized into a substance very similar to
A) Formaldehyde.
B) Vinegar
C) Marijuana
D) Heroine
7) Which of the following eating disorder diagnoses DOES NOT include a tendency toward
maintaining extremely low weight?
A) anorexia nervosa, restricting subtype
B) anorexia nervosa, binge/purge subtype
C) bulimia nervosa, purging subtype
D) all of the above include extremely low weight
8) A person with two or more well-developed systems of identity has the disorder called
A) fugue state.
C) dissociative identity disorder.
B) depersonalization disorder.
D) localized psychogenic amnesia.
9) Freud's original thinking (which is still widely accepted) most associated depression in males
with the emotion of
A) shame.
C) sexual desire.
B) anger.
D) anxious attachment.
10) Once called character disorders, __________ disorders stem from the gradual development of
inflexible and distorted patterns of behavior.
A) antisocial B) dissociative C) personality D) psychopathic
11) All of the following are likely reasons for the greater tendencies of women to experience
unipolar depression than men, EXCEPT
A) hormonal differences between women and men
B) women's roles in society may make them prone to experience a lack of control
C) men tend to engage in distracting activity when depressed
D) women are more likely to ruminate when depressed
12) Why is it unfortunate that bipolar disorder is sometimes misdiagnosed as major depressive
disorder?
A) there is much more stigma associated with major depressive disorder
B) in almost 75 percent of cases, a person with major depressive disorder will later have a manic episode
C) bipolar disorder has many of the same features as anxiety disorder, but major depressive disorder does
not
D) medications given for major depressive disorder can trigger mania in a person with undetected bipolar
disorder
13) Conditions involving physical complaints or disabilities occurring in the absence of any
physical pathology that could account for them are
A) hypochondriacal disorders.
C) dissociative disorders.
B) anxiety disorders.
D) somatoform disorders.
14) Dr. Johnson says, "My client engages in a splitting process where she has one part of her self
that is separate from and unavailable to conscious direction." Dr. Johnson's client best illustrates
A) neurotic anxiety.
B) dissociation.
C) the symptoms of somatoform disorders.
D) factitious disorder.
15) The primary difference between a mild substance use disorder (abuse) and a severe substance
use disorder is:
A) legal difficulties.
C) the substance of abuse.
B) the presence of hospitalization or arrest.
D) the number of substance use symptoms experienced.
16) Evan is terrified because he is convinced that he has a terminal heart condition. He has
consulted with several physicians about it who have found no evidence of any heart disease.
Interestingly, Evan feels disappointed when the doctors find no physical problem and insists they
have not tested him thoroughly. Of the following possibilities, his diagnosis is most probably
A) somatic symptom disorder.
C) hypochondriasis.
B) pain disorder.
D) conversion disorder.
17) The treatment goal for most therapists who treat dissociative identity disorder is
A) acceptance of the alter personalities.
B) reduction in the impact of distress and impairment.
C) integration of the alter personalities.
D) self-understanding of the causes for the alter personalities.
18) The prognosis for the successful treatment of personality disorders is low as these individuals
often lack
A) average levels of intelligence.
C) the ability to pay for services.
B) amenorrhea.
D) subjective discomfort.
19) Individuals who seem odd and eccentric to others may have personality disorders from
A) Cluster A.
B) Cluster B.
C) Cluster C.
D) proposed categories needing further study.
20) Which of the following substance use disorder diagnoses require a separate symptom checklist
for each specific substance to which it refers?
A) Dependence.
B) Abuse.
C) Substance Use Disorder.
D) Substance Withdrawal.
Short Answer – 5 points each
21. Identify the criteria established which allowed the CDC to declare in 1955 that alcoholism was a
disease (list all 5 and describe them).
22. In class, we discussed the diagnosis of Dependent Personality Disorder. As the therapist of an
individual with this disorder, what was expressed as a primary concern or something that a clinician should
attempt to refrain from when dealing with this client (hint: remember what happens to a therapist who begins
treating an individual with a personality disorder). Give at least 2 reasons why.
23. Describe some possible symptoms or behaviors (examples) you might expect to find in an individual
experiencing a dissociative amnesia. What differentiates this from a dissociative fugue?
24. Identify the primary differences/characteristics between Anorexia Nervosa and Bulimia. What is the
first consideration as described in class when dealing with the patient with Anorexia? (hint: where is
treatment likely to occur?).
25. Personality disorders are defined first and foremost as enduring and pervasive. Discuss what these
mean and why they are important in the diagnosis of a personality disorder. How does it affect the
psychologist’s approach to treatment?
26. How is Conversion disorder different than Somatic disorder? What differences, diagnostically, might
you see in a patient that would lead you to one diagnosis over the other?
OR
26. Give a diagnosis for the following case study (Note: She believes she actually has these symptoms
although there is no medical evidence for them. aka – she is not faking her complaints) and explain your
reasoning.
Name:
Score:
Answer Sheet
Exam # 3
23.
1. ______
11._____
2. ______
12._____
3. ______
13._____
4. ______
14_____
5. ______
15_____
6. ______
16_____
7. ______
17_____
8. ______
18_____
9. ______
19_____
10. _____
20_____
21.
22.
24.
25.
26.
Diagnosis:
Reasoning:
Abnormal Psychology
Exam #3
1) Answer: C
2) Answer: D
3) Answer: D
4) Answer: D
5) Answer: A
6) Answer: A
7) Answer: C
8) Answer: C
9) Answer: B
10) Answer: C
11) Answer: A
12) Answer: D
13) Answer: D
14) Answer: B
15) Answer: D
16) Answer: A
17) Answer: C
18) Answer: D
19) Answer: A
20) Answer: D